GDK 618: Worse than death
As soon as the old shaman charged forward, the berserk energy contained in his body flared up, enhancing his power and speed, and allowing him to arrive before Han Shuo in a split second. His calloused, palm leaf-sized hand bolted out along with it, aiming at Han Shuo’s neck.
The old shaman did not summon mighty beasts as he routinely would, nor did he utilize special shamanic techniques. Rather, he simply activated the explosive energy stored within his body and suddenly launched melee attacks. Han Shuo had not foreseen this.
The three experts of the Church of Light, the Light Pope and two demigod experts, appeared to be waiting for the old shaman to strike first. Splendid radiance shone from the trio’s eyes when the old shaman suddenly rushed towards Han Shuo and they followed suit.
The divine knight was just one step behind the old shaman and was charging at Han Shuo from an angle. After a flash of light, out of nowhere, a pike glistening with holy radiances appeared in his grasp. The pike was around three and a half meters long and gave off golden rays. It contained a terrifying amount of holy energy.
Meanwhile, the Light Pope and that light divine magus lowered their heads at the same time and mumbled some cryptic incantations. The Pope was clasping the Holy Grail and the olive branches. The papal tiara that he wore on his head also contained an astonishing amount of divine energy. Amazingly, by relying on the Holy Grail and olive branches in his hands and the Light Papal Tiara on his head, more and more energy accumulated inside his body. The element of light continuously converged on those three divine weapons and they steadily flowed into his body, raising the energy in his body.
The light divine magus held on tightly to a cross and kept it close to his chest. Golden rays shone from the cross and a pair of wings made of light suddenly grew from his back. The pair of glowing wings coupled with him hovering in mid-air made him look as though he was a non-mortal. It seemed that the cross this demigod light magus was holding so dearly must be another divine weapon of the Church of Light. The church had really utilized plenty of their assets on this operation.
As for the last two attackers, the two sacred magi, due to their overwhelming fear of Han Shuo, they couldn’t seem to react when the rest of their teammates attacked. They foolishly stared ahead and forgot to act in tandem with their Church of Light and orc teammates. It appeared that Han Shuo’s conduct at the Shrine of Ice headquarters had struck fear deep into their hearts, causing them to hesitate to strike in this situation.
Although all this had taken place in just a fraction of a second, Han Shuo’s consciousness was so utilitarian that it could peer all around and give Han Shuo a clear and detailed picture of everyone’s actions.
Han Shuo looked calmly at that old shaman’s big hand covered with calluses. He squinted his eyes slightly as ruthless, murderous and ominous glints glittered from them. He remained still and stood tall on the same ground like a deeply rooted tree.
As Han Shuo did not move a muscle, naturally, that old shaman managed to grab Han Shuo’s neck. The old shaman’s fierce hand that shacked Han Shuo’s neck had visible veins popping out of it that looked akin to small slithering snakes. His eyes filled with rancor suddenly had a trace of pleasant surprise. He had never expected that his attack would come off so easily.
Creak… The moment that the old shaman’s big hand buckled Han Shuo’s neck, he strained every muscle in his hand and squeezed. The berserk energy in his body erupted like a bomb. Immediately after he had exerted all his strength in tightening his grip, a clear and crisp noise sounded.
He was surprised yet again, and in the best way possible. At this moment, the old shaman thought that Han Shuo in reality was absolutely far from being as formidable as was told in hearsay. With the resentment from the deaths of his several hundred thousand orc brothers in mind, the old shaman’s hand clenched tighter and tighter. It seemed as though Han Shuo’s neck would snap cleanly into two at any moment.
Whoosh… The noise of the divine knight dashing at him suddenly passed through Han Shuo’s ears. That pike giving off glorious golden radiance was like a venomous viper as it suddenly appeared beside Han Shuo, piercing at his waist.
The divine knight was greatly relieved when he saw the old shaman tightly strangling Han Shuo and was therefore unreserved and upfront in his attack, giving no thought for an escape route. He assumed that because Han Shuo couldn’t budge a muscle, it was a matter of course that the battle would be over in no time.
So it turns out that this fella isn’t as valiant as they say after all. It seems that the destruction of the Shrine of Ice must have happened because their disciples were just too weak, the divine knight thought as he ferociously thrusted his pike.
Chak! The distinctive sound of the pike piercing through intestines fell into the divine knight’s ears. That wonderful noise made the corners of his lips curl to reveal a contented smile. His heart was filled with satisfaction and delight. However, that feeling of joy did not last for long. The loud shriek of pain that followed had interrupted his little happy moment.
“Ow! Owww… It’s… It’s me you stabbed!” the old shaman was exasperated as he cried out in pain.
The divine knight was startled and he immediately wiped that satisfied smile cleanly off his face. He looked at the old shaman who was pierced by his pike, puzzled and crammed with disbelief. He had absolutely no clue how that strike clearly aimed at Han Shuo would ultimately land on the old shaman.
Creak… Creak… As that old shaman miserably shrieked in pain, he continued to apply excessive grip on Han Shuo’s neck.
Strangely enough, even through the powerful squeezing and constraining, Han Shuo, who should have been dead by now from having his neck snapped, still had a pair of calm and cold eyes. There was even the slight hint of a sneer on his face. It was as though he did not feel one bit of pain; as though the neck being constricted by the old shaman wasn’t even his.
The divine knight was astounded and decided to withdraw. But right at that moment, a monstrous hand suddenly penetrated the old shaman’s right lung and whooshed at his chest as blood squirted everywhere. That holy armor glistening with golden rays which even his own pike could not puncture appeared to be as fragile as a thin sheet of paper before the big bloody hand. The armor did not put up the slightest bit of resistance before it was penetrated by the hand. The hand then entered his right chest and came out the other side. A palm was revealed on his back.
It was only now that the divine knight slowly turned his head and looked. He discovered that Han Shuo’s arm had pierced through the old shaman’s chest before getting to his.
At this moment, the divine knight was even more appalled to discover that the old shaman’s hand extended straight out was still clasping onto Han Shuo’s neck. There was at least an arm’s length of distance between Han Shuo and the old shaman. The distance between the divine knight and the old shaman was at least two meters. To add to the depth of the shaman’s body, he was at least four meters away from Han Shuo.
Given how long that arm which ran through his and the old shaman’s body had to be, he really wondered if Han Shuo was human.
The divine knight suddenly felt his blood run cold. His scalp tingled as he looked at that arm connecting him and the old shaman. Immense fear rose in his heart. He had long cast his contemptuous view of Han Shuo’s strength far, far away. Ignoring the sharp pain surging through his chest, he pointed at Han Shuo and shouted, “What, what monster are you?”
Han Shuo cracked a cold grin and replied, “You can find out about that from your Light God soon!”
Upon finishing those words, that long arm that pierced through the two demigods suddenly hacked downwards. The arm seemed to have turned into a blade at this moment and sliced through their organs like a hot knife cutting through butter. Their bodies were torn from chest down. A mixture of blood and organs splattered on the ground.
But Han Shuo wasn’t done yet. He proceeded with chopping his arm upwards and turned the demi-gods into demi-bodies. Two lively demigods had turned into four very dead half-bodies in no time. The scene was extremely gory and cruel. The reeking of blood started to spread. The battle on Han Shuo’s side was over before the Light Pope and the divine magus had completed their cryptic incantations. The two revealed expressions of unwillingness to witness the bloody deaths of their partners.
The swell of confidence that the two sacred magi of the Shrine of Ice gained shortly after the battle began had now completely crumbled. They were struck by an even more immense fear in an instant. They were now heavily panting. Their willpower had completely collapsed, no longer daring to even have any thoughts of seeking revenge.
“Oh? You hope to flee with your soul? Hmm, that’s a good idea, but my sincerest apologies, I’m afraid that won’t be possible!” After Han Shuo split the two bodies into four, when he was about to turn his attention to deal with the remaining two from the Church of Light, his consciousness suddenly detected that the old shaman’s soul did not dissipate between the heaven and earth but was drifting away with the wind.
More often than not, those with mighty souls while alive, could be reborn by relying on a medium using special techniques, just as long as their souls were not scattered in death. That Church of Light’s divine knight must have been poor in the cultivation of his soul and therefore it had gradually scattered between heaven and earth after his physical body was destroyed. He definitely had no hope for a second life.
Seeing the old shaman’s soul drift further and further with the wind, Han Shuo gave a snort and flicked a finger. A dark radiance shot right at the old shaman’s soul and was pulled right back to Han Shuo. It was then confined within the ring, which had previously sheltered Gilbert’s soul.
For the old shaman’s soul to not dissipate after death meant that his soul energy was rather decent. It was most suitable for Han Shuo to refine some demonic weapons that required mighty souls as primers. Of course Han Shuo would capture it.
After the old shaman’s soul fell into the Soul Depository Ring, through the wonderful effect of the ring, Han Shuo heard the old shaman’s soul bellow in irreconciliation, “Let go of me! I will kill you! You despicable thing!”
“What a poor soul. How are you going to kill me when you are already dead? Hehe, after some time, I will use your soul to refine tools. At that time, you will be without one bit of awareness and your soul will be under my control – forever. That will be simply delightful, don’t you think?” Han Shuo gave a loud and sinister snort. His consciousness entered the ring and transmitted a malicious message, making the old shaman irascible and furious, yet he was powerless to do anything.
The old shaman, with his soul trapped inside the ring, could do nothing to alter his tragic fate. This was unquestionably worse than death.
